Author: Louise Balsmeyer

Susan Hansen, July 22, 2011 from Trinity College on Vimeo.

Hansen, Susan. Oral history interview on West Hartford, CT and restrictive covenants (with video), by Candace Simpson for the Cities, Suburbs, and Schools Project, July 22, 2011.Available from the Trinity College Digital Repository, Hartford Connecticut (http://digitalrepository.trincoll.edu/cssp/).

The picture above from the Hartford History Center displays students from the city of Hartford being bused in to a school in Suffield, approximately 30 minutes outside the urban center. This photo is somewhat surprising due to the fact that it is from 1968, because it displays racial segregation in the educational system slowly advancing towards integration. It indicates that the children bused in from Hartford were of African American descent and the teacher greeting the students is Caucasian therefore integrating mixed races under one building.
In the video below, Susan Hansen responds to the map portraying the race restrictive covenants in her suburban dwelling that were permissible in the 1940’s stating that, “[It was] before my time so I don’t really give it much thought. But no, I never heard of this. I never this happening anywhere, really, in Connecticut or this part of the country. Like I said, grow up in New York and when you heard about problems, it was “Well, that’s the South. You know, they still have this horrible segregation, but we don’t have it in New York.” At least superficially we didn’t have it in New York, but certainly when I was a kid, you noticed” [00:05:43]. Race restrictive covenants go hand in hand with the educational system that was enforced in the same time period. Just like any discriminatory or communal policy implemented, the internal institutions such as schools were affected along with the community members, students, in the same society. The shock that Hansen evokes provides the evidence that the notion of racial segregation has certainly diminished if not completely eliminated in the modern world, giving the photo above credit for the production of integrated schooling.

Eleanor Caplan, oral history interview on CT Civil Rights Commission, July 9, 2011 from Trinity College on Vimeo.

This map examines the maximum density for multifamily housing in the Hartford area. The areas in the Hartford zone that are not included in the data, (the white sections on the map) are those that do not have any information thus far and therefore cannot be incorporated. They are: West Hartford, Berlin, Asonia, Derby, Devon, East Haven, Guilford, Middlebury, North Guilford, Northford, Short Beach, Totket, Union City, West Simsbury, Whitneyville, Wolcott, Cobalt, East Hampton, Fenwick, Higganum, Ivoryton, Killingworth, Lake Pocotopaug, Middlesex, Moodus, Rockfall, Saybrook Point, Westfield, Winthrop. As for the sections in the Hartford zone with the appropriate data, these display the amount of apartments/units that can be in one building’s ground per square feet. They are scaled from one to 90, lightest red to darkest red. The areas with the least amount of units permitted on a lot tend to be those that are subside in wealthier areas, where real estate is more expensive and only multifamiliy homes with a steady, sufficient income can be accepted. In the areas like the city of Hartford itself, 75 units per square feet are accepted in one lot therefore the apartments allowed would be a lesser cost and a family with limited income would probably be able to afford such a unit. The greatest amount of units per square feet permitted in a lot is in East Hartford, ranking 87.12 units. This would mean that the majority of families who would reside in this lot would be a low-class, probably minority, family. In a racial extremist terms, most multiracial and minority families would not be able to provide the funding to live in such areas leading us to question whether housing segregation still exists and if so, is this an indirect way to discriminate against the Hartford population?